Shall We Dance?
by cmaddict
Summary: He watched her as she got out of her car and walked into her building... He hummed the words she had been singing this morning. Shall we dance?... Terrible at summaries! COMPLETE!
1. Chapter 1

**_Disclaimer: The characters of Criminal Minds are not mine. So please don't sue._**

**Chapter 1**

He watched as she got out of her car and entered her building. He caught his breath as she flipped her hair over her shoulder to sign in at the security desk. _Soon_, he thought. _Soon you'll be mine…forever._

This morning he was close enough to smell her perfume, and it nearly drove him mad. He wanted her. Desperately. He hummed to himself the song she was singing this morning.

_Shall we dance? On a bright cloud of music_

_Shall we fly? Shall we dance?_

_Shall we then say "goodnight" and mean "goodbye"?_

He clenched his fist. All he could do now was wait, until he could finally make her his. She would see that it had to be that way.

He watched as she went to the elevator. Soon she would be getting the gift he left for her. He hoped she would like it. He was sure she would like it.

"Good morning, Derek," Elle Greenaway said as she got off the elevator at the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit.

Derek Morgan glanced up at her. "Why are you in such a good mood this morning."

Elle sat at her desk. "Well, Morgan, it's a combination of twelve hours of sleep, coffee, and no new cases." She noticed a small package on her desk. "What's this?"

Jason Gideon and Aaron "Hotch" Hotchner came over. "Hey, Morgan, do you have the file on the Garza case?" Hotch asked.

"Sure." Morgan shuffled through the files on his desk until he found the right one. He handed it to Hotch.

Gideon saw Elle looking at the package. "Elle, I didn't know it was your birthday."

"It's not. My birthday isn't until September." Elle opened it and pulled out a box and a letter.

"Who's it from?" Hotch leaned over her.

Elle opened the letter. " 'To my beautiful woman, shall we dance?'" Elle furrowed her brow.

Reid took the letter out of her hands. "Elle's got a secret admirer," he said, a slight hint of a smile playing on his thin lips.

Elle glared at the young man. Her reaction just made his smile wider.

"What's in the package?" Hotch asked.

"Yeah, hurry up and open it," Morgan said impatiently.

Elle slowly ripped the brown paper off the box and lifted the lid. She stopped for a moment and stared at the contents. Her face registered confusion mixed with horror.

"What is it?" Gideon asked, worried at Elle's reaction.

She slowly drew out a small figurine. It was a man and woman, faces pressed together, dancing. She reached under it and pressed a button. The man and woman began to dance, twirling around and around. _Shall we dance?_ The music box played as the figures continued to twirl in a circle. Elle pressed the button again, and the music and figures stopped.

Hotch stared at his colleague. Her face was pale. "Are you okay?" he asked, his hand on Elle's shoulder.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she said, her voice quivering.

"Are you sure?" Gideon asked, even more concerned.

She looked at Gideon, his weathered face betraying his worry. "Yes, I'm fine." She put her hand on his arm. "Really." Her face was back to normal, but her thoughts whirled. "So," she said, a grin coming to her face. "What's on the docket today?"

Elle unlocked her front door and grabbed the mail from the floor. She dumped her bag and her jacket on the couch and made her way to the kitchen. "Bill, bill, bill…" she muttered to herself. She started the coffee maker and sat at the kitchen table, her back to the door.

She heard a noise behind her, but before she could turn around, a black-gloved hand grabbed her mouth, stifling her scream. She grunted and tried to hit him, but he was just too strong. He shoved a rag over her mouth and nose. She recognized the foul smell of chloroform. Slowly, her world faded to black, and she went limp.

**_Ooooh, cliffhanger! Please R&R! More to come if you like it. I'm open to constructive criticism, but please, be nice._**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Since I forgot to mention it before, I also don't own the words to "Shall We Dance?". That's the property of Rodgers and Hammerstein (I think).**

**Chapter 2**

"Hey, have you heard from Elle?" Morgan said as he poked his head into Hotch's office the next morning.

Hotch looked up from one of the many files on his desk. "No. Why?"

Morgan motioned to the area that he shared with Reid, J.J., and Elle. "She's not here yet."

Hotch glanced at his watch. "She's only fifteen minutes late. She probably got stuck in traffic."

"Yeah, you're probably right." Morgan didn't sound convinced.

"She'll probably come walking in any minute now." Hotch tried to sound convincing, for Morgan's sake. But he began to get worried. Being late wasn't like Elle.

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Elle groaned quietly. She slowly opened her eyes, trying to shake off the fog of the drug. _What happened? I remember, I was sitting at my table…_ Elle's brain kicked in. _He must have drugged me_. Elle had a bitter taste in her mouth. _Chloroform._

She tried to move her hands. For some reason they wouldn't move. She looked down to see that her hands were chained together in front of her. _Great._

Her eyes, still clouded by the chloroform, slowly began to adjust to the darkness. She took time to look at her surroundings. _It must be a basement of some kind_. She could hear water dripping in the distance, and the rats began to scurry in the far corner. It was a large room, and Elle was in the middle of it, bound to a chair.

Elle began to struggle against the chains. "I wouldn't do that," a male voice sounded. A light flipped on, and Elle was blinded by the sudden brightness.

"Who are you?" she demanded.

He didn't answer. Instead the shadowy figure slowly walked toward her.

"Who are you?" she demanded again, suddenly frightened.

He stopped in front of her, his face hidden in the shadow. A hand reached out and stroked her cheek. "So beautiful," he murmured. "So cold."

Elle jerked her head away from him. He tried to push his hand towards her again, and she spit at him. That earned her a backhand across her face. Elle tasted blood in her mouth, and she glared at him, hoping he could see the evil look she was giving him.

The hand grabbed her by the chin. The fingers were hard and cold. "Don't ever do that again!" the voice said harshly. She tried as hard as she could to see his face. "You will learn to love me, Elle Greenaway. One way or another."

The figure began moving toward the light and suddenly stopped. He crossed to the other side of the room and turned on a stereo.

_Shall we dance?_ The music rang through the room. _On a bright cloud of music…_

The figure disappeared, and so did the light.

Elle hung her head and cried silently in the darkness, the song that she had once loved muffling her sobs. _Please_, she prayed. _Please come get me, Gideon. Please, come get me._

**Short chapter, I know, but I gotta leave ya hanging! Please R&R!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Gideon heard a knock at his door. "Come in," he said, looking up from his work.

Morgan opened the door, followed by Hotch and Reid. "Have you heard from Elle?" he asked, his eyes betraying his concern.

"No, why?" Gideon asked, locking eyes with him.

"She's an hour late," Hotch replied, trying to mask the worry he felt.

"Have you tried her cell phone?" Gideon asked.

Reid nodded. "She's not answering."

Gideon's face paled slightly. This wasn't the normal Elle, coming in late and not calling. "Let's go," he said, grabbing his jacket and pushing past the younger agents.

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Hotch pulled up to Elle's house, and the four agents ran up the sidewalk. Gideon stopped short of the house. "Oh, my God," he breathed.

"What?" Morgan asked.

Gideon could only point silently at the house. The others caught their breaths as they saw what he was staring at. Elle's front door was wide open.

Hotch pushed past him and went in. "Elle?" he called, desperately hoping she had just overslept. "Elle?"

Morgan followed right behind him. "Hey, Elle?" he yelled. He bent down and picked up her purse off the couch. He showed it to Hotch and Gideon, who had finally managed to get his feet moving. "She would have never left without this," he said, handing it to Gideon.

Gideon took it as Hotch moved toward the kitchen. The others followed him. Hotch gestured toward the counter where an empty coffee mug sat. "She didn't even drink her coffee."

Reid paled as he spotted something on the kitchen table. "Uh… guys…" he said, pointing with a shaking finger.

Hotch followed Reid's finger and saw a slip of paper. Reid reached out to pick it up, but Gideon grabbed his arm. "Fingerprints," Gideon reminded him.

Hotch bent down to read the handwritten note. " 'Don't bother coming after her. I'm going to make her mine… permanently. Signed, SWD."

"SWD?" Reid asked.

Gideon stared off into the distance. "Shall we dance."

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Morgan sat at his desk at the BAU, his head in his hands. He heard someone come up behind him. "Are you okay?" he heard Reid's voice ask.

Morgan lifted his head and locked eyes with the younger man.

Reid smiled worriedly. "Yeah, I'm worried about her too."

"Hey," Hotch said as he approached the two men. "How are you?"

Morgan smiled ruefully. "Any leads?"

Hotch shook his head. "CSU went up and down Elle's house and didn't find anything out of the ordinary. No prints, no DNA, no sweat."

"And the letter?"

Hotch pulled out a copy of it. "They compared it to the letter that Elle got with the package, and it was definitely written by the same person."

"So, he's stalking her?" Reid asked.

"It sure looks like it." Hotch rubbed his head. "Did Elle mention anything strange going on?"

Morgan shook his head. The phone on his desk rang.

"Morgan," he said into the microphone. He listened for a minute and stood. "Where?" He listened again. "Okay. Okay. We'll be right there." Morgan hung up and grabbed his jacket. "That was CSU. They found something outside Elle's house."

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The BAU pulled up to Elle's house once again. One of the crime scene officers met them. "We found something in the bushes over here." He led them to a bush next to Elle's front door.

He pointed to the ground under the bush. Morgan could make out a small indentation in the dirt. "A footprint!" he said excitedly.

The crime scene officer nodded. "We'll get you a copy of the cast when we get it done. Right now, I can say that it is definitely a man's size ten."

"Thanks, man," Morgan said as he clapped the man on the shoulder. He joined the other agents. Gideon was bending over something on the ground.

"What is it?" Morgan asked.

Gideon picked it up. It was a woman's earring. "You recognize this?" he asked.

Hotch took it in his hand. "It's Elle's," he said in a choked voice. "Haley and I gave her the pair for her birthday last year." He looked up at Gideon, tears welling up in his eyes. "We've got to find her, Gideon. Soon."


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Elle groaned as she awoke again. Her hands were asleep. She tried to wiggle her fingers to wake them up.

The light at the top of the stairs blinded her again. "Good morning, beautiful," the man's voice said again. "I brought you some food." The smell of food wafted down from the open door, and it made her stomach rumble.

He pulled out a set of keys and fit one of them into the lock. The chain fell off her hands, and she rubbed them, trying to get the circulation back into her wrists. He handed her a plate with something that smelled like chicken. "Eat up," he said, taking a seat across from her.

Elle ignored the plate.

"You don't trust me," he said, his face still hidden in the shadows.

"Why should I?" she asked fiercely.

"Because you're hungry," he said matter-of-factly. "You don't eat this, you'll starve."

Elle looked at the plate. She was extremely hungry. She didn't know how long it had been since her last meal, but her stomach complained that it was empty. She picked up the silverware he had given her and slowly began to eat.

He watched her intently. The way she moved her mouth when she chewed, the way she cut the meat, everything about her excited him.

Elle finished the food and handed it back to him. He took it without a word and began to move back toward the stairs. "Hey," she said. He stopped and turned around. "Why are you doing this?"

There was a long pause as he studied her features in the light. "You're free to move around the room," he said. "But if you try to escape, though it pains me, I will have to kill you." With that he turned around and walked back up the stairs, turning on the light in the room.

Elle glanced around her prison. _I was right. It is a basement_. She got up out of the chair. It had boxes all around the room, piled nearly to the ceiling. Some of them were open, and dirty dusty clothes hung out of them.

He had pictures on the wall. Her hand went to her mouth when she realized what it was, and she felt like she was going to be sick. They were pictures of her. News clippings of the cases that the BAU had worked on. She saw pictures of her and Gideon and Hotch and Reid and the rest of them, milling around one of their many crimes scenes. Horrified, she couldn't tear her eyes away from the message written on them. _MINE_. The tears welled up in her eyes.

Elle looked away and vomited quietly.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Morgan held the plaster casts from the crime scene up. "All right," he said. Reid, Hotch, and Gideon listened intently. "We've obviously got a male, size ten shoes, and, according to CSU, he has a problem with his instep." Morgan marked it out on the cast. "It's irregular."

Hotch rubbed his eyes. "And how does that help us?"

Morgan stared at him in silence. "Hotch, I want to find her just as bad as you do."

"All right, all right," Gideon held his hands up. "This isn't going to save Elle."

Morgan and Hotch said nothing.

"What do we have?" Reid asked.

Hotch held up his copies of both letters. "An obsessive man. He's probably extremely lonely, can't communicate with women very well."

"So he kidnaps them?" Reid asked.

"It doesn't have to make sense."

"Yeah," Morgan chimed in. "It's the fanatic mentality. They see something they want and they're willing to get it at all costs." Morgan grabbed the first letter. "He stalked her. He watched her every move, everything she did. He had some connection with her, either in his workplace or hers."

"Well, it couldn't be hers," Gideon said, his arms folded across his chest.

"Did she mention anything to anyone about a relationship she was in, weird phone calls, anything like that?" Hotch asked, looking at Gideon and Morgan.

Gideon shook his head.

Hotch stood. "All right. We start looking at everything, all of her habits, everywhere she went, everything she did."

Gideon grabbed his jacket. "We check out her grocery stores, where she shopped, video rentals, coffee shops. That's where we're most likely to find her."

Reid and Morgan grabbed their bags. _Hang on, Elle_, Gideon thought.

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The BAU team got to Elle's grocery store shortly before closing time. They were met by a tired woman at the front door. "May I help you?" she asked in a bored voice.

"FBI," Hotch said as he flipped out his badge. The others did the same.

The woman suddenly looked very interested. "What does the FBI want with us?"

Morgan pulled out a picture of Elle. "Have you seen this woman before?"

The lady studied the picture. "Pretty girl," she murmured. Her face lit up with recognition. "Oh, yeah. She comes in here about once every two weeks. Always buys a lot of coffee. Very nice woman, very polite."

"Are you her regular cashier?" Gideon asked.

She laughed. "Heavens, no! I haven't worked the register in ten years." She pointed to a man behind one of the registers. "That's her normal person."

Hotch thanked the woman and they slowly walked over to the register. "Hey," Morgan called out.

The man looked up.

"FBI, we'd like to…" The man bolted before Morgan could finish.

Morgan and Hotch took off after him. "Hey!" they called. "Halt! Federal agents!"

The man ran down one of the aisles, pulling things off of the shelves. Morgan and Hotch dodged cans rolling toward them on the floor. "Stop!" they yelled.

He kept running, glancing back toward them. He never saw it coming. He connected with a strong fist on his jaw, and he crumpled to the floor.

Gideon stood over the unconscious cashier, holding his bruised hand.

Hotch bent over the man and looked up at Gideon. "Nice shot," he said.

Gideon shrugged. "He should learn to look where he's going."

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"Man, I didn't do nothin'," James Rodgers fidgeted in the chair in one of the FBI's interrogation rooms.

"Oh, yeah?" Morgan said as he leaned over the young man. "Then why did you run?"

Rodgers shrugged. "Didn't wanna talk to you," he mumbled.

Morgan turned away, laughing. Suddenly, he slapped the table in front of him. Rodgers jumped. "You'd better start talking," he seethed, moving his head within six inches of Rodger's nose. "You're looking at aggravated kidnapping."

"That's twenty-five years in a federal prison," Gideon said, leaning forward. Rodgers suddenly began to look very nervous.

"If I find out that you hurt her," Morgan said, his face now within three inches of Rodger's nose. "I'm not responsible for what I do to you."

"Wait," Rodgers said, putting his hands up. Morgan backed off slightly. "Who's her?"

Gideon shoved a picture of Elle at him. "You recognize her?"

"Yeah, of course I do. She comes in every coupla weeks. She usually gives me a nice tip."

"Well, she's missing," Morgan said, hands on his hips.

Rodgers looked back and forth between the two agents. "And you think I had something to do with this? Why would I do that?"

"Where were you between nine o'clock yesterday night and six o'clock this morning?" Gideon asked, leaning back in his chair.

"Working," he said, throwing the picture at Gideon. "And you can check with my boss."

"You can bet we will," Morgan said, turning around to go.

"Wait," Gideon said, stopping him. "Let me see your shoes."

Rodgers looked confused.

"Just do it!" Morgan said, slapping him in the head.

Rodgers took off one of his sneakers and handed it to Gideon.

Gideon studied it for a minute and handed it to Morgan. "Size seven," Gideon said.

"Now can I go?" Rodgers asked, grabbing his shoe.

"Not yet," Morgan replied, shoving him back into his seat.

Morgan followed Gideon out of the room, where they met Hotch and Reid. "So where does that take us?" Reid asked Gideon.

"Back to square one."


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: I borrowed a little from the Phantom of the Opera. Not too much, hopefully. No copyright infringement is purposeful.**

**Chapter 6**

Elle felt a cool cloth on her face. She groaned. "Gideon?" she mumbled.

"No, sweetheart." It was that voice again.

Elle jerked her head away. The shadowy man leaned over her. "You passed out," he said quietly.

She sat up quickly. "I'm fine," she lied, her head pounding.

He moved in closer and cupped her cheek in his hand. His fingers were ice cold. Elle pulled away.

He sighed and stood up. He held out his hand to help her up. She refused and stood on her own. He sighed again and pressed a button on the remote he held in his left hand. _Shall we dance?_ The music rang through the room softly. _On a bright cloud of music, shall we fly?_

He put his hand around her waist and pulled her close. Elle stiffened. "I love to dance," he said into her ear. "I know you do too."

Elle closed her eyes and tensed her body. He apparently felt it. "I wouldn't do that," he said coldly. "You'd never get out. The house is booby-trapped. Only I know how to get in and out."

Elle felt the blood drain out of her face as he pulled her even closer. She tried to relax into his arms.

"That's better," he whispered.

Elle paused.

" 'Or perchance,'" he sang softly, " 'when the last little star has left the sky…'" He looked at her. She could see his brown eyes through the shadow that was on his face. "You won't sing with me?"

Elle said nothing.

"I know how much you love this song," he said. "I heard you one day, talking about how much you loved 'The King and I'. How much you loved the scene where she danced with the King. I thought you'd enjoy hearing it."

"Why would you care?" she asked harshly.

"Because, my darling," he said, tipping her chin back with his cold finger, "I love you so much." He pulled her head into his chest. "I want to make you mine."

Elle's mind whirled. She tried to think of a way she could escape from this nightmare without getting herself killed. _Please, save me!_ Elle prayed silently.

"One day, you'll learn how to love me," he continued.

Elle tried to keep her voice calm. "How will I love you if I've never seen your face?"

She felt him stiffen. "You've seen my face," he said matter-of-factly.

"Where?" she pressed.

"You'll figure it out," he replied. "You're so smart," he said, brushing her cheek.

Elle lifted her hand to touch his face. It felt cold, lifeless. Horrified, she drew her hand back.

The music stopped, and so did he.

"Step into the light," she said, her voice trembling.

He slowly took two steps into the light that streamed from the open door. His face was drooping on the left side. It was wrinkled and red. He had no hair on that side. His ear was fused into his head. She gasped with horror and recognition.

"Now you know," he said softly. "And now you will never leave."


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

The discouraged BAU team huddled around a table in one of the many conference rooms off the main office.

"What now?" Morgan asked, throwing his file folder across the room. "We have zero leads! And it's been twenty-four hours."

Hotch lowered his head into his hands. "I failed her," he whispered. "I should have protected her."

Morgan glanced at him. "We all should have protected her," he said, gently squeezing Hotch's shoulder.

Reid rolled his eyes. "Oh, come on!" he said, obviously annoyed. "She's not dead!"

"That we know of," corrected Morgan.

"Since when do we give up?" Reid said, glaring at him. "A lead will turn up. Elle deserves at least a little hope that we might find her."

Hotch and Morgan said nothing. They hated to admit it, but they knew the kid was right.

Morgan sighed. "I should have done something the moment she got that package."

Hotch flipped through one of the folders. Suddenly he stopped, and his eyes lit up. "The package!" he said, grasping Morgan by the shoulders.

Morgan glanced at Reid, who shrugged.

Hotch practically ran from the room to Elle's desk. He rummaged through her trash can until he found the scraps of brown packing paper. "If it was delivered here, it would have to have a return address."

Morgan's tired face stretched into a grin. Maybe there was hope for Elle after all.

Hotch pulled out the paper. "If there's a return address, it should be right here." Hotch smiled in triumph. "Here. 816 Richards Avenue, Quantico."

Reid booted up his laptop at his desk. His fingers flew over the keyboard. Morgan bent over him, reading over his shoulder. Reid's face grew pale, and Morgan's mouth dropped open.

"What is it?" Hotch asked.

Reid didn't answer, but stared at the screen in horror. Morgan turned away and held his head in his hands.

"What is it?" Hotch asked again.

"It doesn't exist," Reid said hoarsely.

"What!" Hotch bent over Reid's shoulder. "It's got to!"

Reid tapped the screen with a shaking finger. "It doesn't, Hotch!"

"But it's just got to!"

Reidgrabbed Hotch by the shoulders and shook him gently. "It doesn't!" Hotch's tears flowed freely, and so did Reid's. "It's nowhere."


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Elle's kidnapper sat dejectedly on one of the boxes, his head in his hands. Elle could hear sobs coming from his body. She was speechless and horrified. This was something she had never seen before, and she had seen a lot.

"It was acid," he whispered. He looked up at her, catching her eyes. "I was a kid. I had been playing in our garage, and acid fell on my face."

Elle remained silent, not knowing what to say.

"My mother couldn't even look at me. Every girl ran from me." He got up and grabbed Elle by the chin, forcing her to stare into his deformed face. "Not anymore," he seethed. "You _will _learn how to love me. I'm a lonely man, Elle Greenaway. I've been lonely for thirty years. But no longer."

Elle pulled her face away from him. "I will never love you!" she said coldly. She backed away and sat in her chair in the middle of the room, arms folded on front of her chest.

He watched her. She was so beautiful, and he hated to do this to her. "Fine," he replied, just as coldly. "If that is the case, then you will have to pay. Like the others."

Elle started at that. "Others? What others?" she said, beginning to panic.

He ignored her and went back up the stairs.

"What others?" she yelled. The sound of the door slamming was her only answer.

Elle began to cry. She had a sinking feeling that her life was about to come to an end. And there was nothing that she could do about it.

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"There has to be something we're missing," Reid mused, running his fingers through his brown hair.

"We've checked out every lead," Hotch said wearily. "We've come up with nothing."

Gideon sat on the other side of the room, staring at the brown packing paper. He had said nothing since he found out that the return address on Elle's present was a phony. He just stared at it.

"I hope he manages to figure it out," Morgan said, motioning to their unit chief. "Elle doesn't have enough time to wait."

A delivery man handed Hotch an envelope, then left. Hotch quickly ripped it open. "Great," he said, throwing it down.

"What is it?" Morgan inquired. "Is it about Elle?"

Hotch shook his head. "I wish," he said in an annoyed voice. "It's just a letter from Haley. She's off visiting her parents."

Gideon sat upright in his chair. "Let me see that," he said, grabbing the letter.

Hotch, Morgan and Reid glanced at each other, confused.

Gideon placed the letter back on the desk. "We've been looking at this all wrong," he said. He grabbed Morgan's phone and dialed a number.

"What's he doing?" Reid whispered to Hotch. The elder man shrugged.

"Yes, this is Agent Jason Gideon from the Behavioral Analysis Unit," Gideon said into the microphone. "Do you have a record of a package delivered to Agent Elle Greenaway in this unit?" Gideon listened for a moment. "Okay. Thank you." He replaced the phone and looked up at the others. "The mail room has no record of the package."

Morgan and Reid still looked confused.

"Who is the one person that has access to all the mail in and out of the headquarters, and access to our office at all hours of the day?"

Hotch sat up quickly. "The mailman!"

"Exactly!" Gideon said triumphantly.

Morgan grabbed his jacket off the back of the chair. "He could have easily placed that package on Elle's desk before she got there."

"So the workplace was the connection," Reid said as they ran to the elevator.

"Right," Gideon replied. "He watched her every move. He had the chance to."

"And no one notices a delivery man, since they're always running around," Moran finished.

"We've got to find her," Hotch said. "This has to be it. Elle doesn't have much longer."

"Why?" Reid asked.

"The fantasy will soon be over," Gideon said. "Elle would never agree to his demands, no matter how much it would save her life. And he can't take rejection. Eventually, he will retaliate." Gideon locked eyes with Reid. "And then it will be over for Elle."


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

Gideon, Hotch, Reid and Morgan practically ran to the mail room in the basement of the headquarters. They were met by an elderly man at the desk. "May I help you?" he asked in a bored tone.

"I'm Agent Gideon, and I need some information out of you," Gideon said, flashing his badge.

"I don't have time…" the old man began.

"Neither do we!" interjected Hotch impatiently. "This is an emergency!" Hotch leaned over the old man's desk, with his nose inching closer to the other man's. "And if you want to be responsible for the death of another agent, you'll help us. Now."

That grabbed the old man's attention. "What can I do for you?" he asked.

"I need to know who was working yesterday morning."

The old man searched his records. "How early?" he asked.

"Seven-thirty," Morgan replied, growing more impatient by the minute.

"I had three employees yesterday morning here. Kevin Marsley, Paul Folger, and Robert Eisley."

"Do you have pictures?"

The old man sighed and pulled out three files. He handed them to Gideon, who handed one to Hotch and one to Morgan.

Hotch flipped through his file. "No, it's not Folger. He's married with three kids."

Morgan flipped through his. "And it's not Marsley. He's only eighteen years old."

Gideon stared at his and wordlessly handed it to Hotch. Hotch's mouth fell open when he saw the picture. "My God," he breathed and handed it to Morgan and Reid.

"A face like that would certainly fit the profile," Gideon said.

"Looks like he was burned by acid or something," Reid said, his face showing his horror.

Hotch pulled out a notepad and wrote down the address. He tossed the files back to the old man, and the four agentsdashed out the door. "Thanks!" Reid yelled over his shoulder.

"Hey!" the man yelled. "Who's gonna clean this up?" He surveyed the mess on his desk and the floor. "Oh, crap," he muttered and got to work.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

Elle heard the creak of the door at the top of the stairs. The shadowy figure made his way down the stairs. "You would not accept me," he said in an even tone. "You will have to pay."

Slowly Elle's eyes adjusted to the sudden light. Her eyes fell on something he was holding in his right hand. Fear rushed through her body. It was a knife.

He moved quickly and grabbed her by her hair. "Goodbye, my darling," he whispered into her ear. And he raised the knife.

Suddenly, Elle heard shouts through the open basement door. The man she recognized as Robert Eisler looked up, startled. The voices were distant, coming from outside, but she recognized the voices of Hotch and Gideon. Eisler still looked toward the open door.

Elle took advantage of the distraction and reacted. She slammed her elbow into his gut. He doubled over with a "Whoosh" of air rushing from his body.

Elle dashed up the stairs, yelling at the top of her lungs. "Gideon!" she screamed. "Hotch!"

Eisler recovered quickly and sprinted after her. He grabbed her by her hair and dragged her backward. She screamed and kicked him. He grunted in pain and grabbed her wrists. Slowly, he raised the knife. Elle raked her fingernails across the good side of his face. He dropped the knife and held his bleeding face, howling in pain. Elle picked up the knife and thrust it into his stomach.

Eisler doubled over and fell to his knees, blood running through his fingers. "Elle?" he said, tears streaming down his deformed face. He clutched his bleeding abdomen. With his last ounce of strength, he pulled out a remote and pressed the button. _Shall we dance?_ The notes floated up from the open basement door. _On a bright cloud of music, shall we fly?_

He looked into Elle's eyes, his brown eyes glazing over. "Goodbye, my dear Elle," he whispered, and then his head lolled over. _Shall we then say 'goodnight' and mean 'goodbye'?_

"Elle?" she heard Gideon's voice through the front door.

"Gideon?" she asked, going to the door.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"We're going to break the door down."

"No!" she yelled. "He's got it booby-trapped."

Outside, Hotch, Gideon and Morgan looked at each other. "Booby-trapped?" Morgan yelled. "How?"

"I don't know!" Elle answered. "He's dead."

"What happened?" Hotch asked, his voice betraying his concern.

"He came at me with a knife."

Morgan pulled Hotch and Gideon away from the door. "We've got to get in there," he said.

"Elle," Reid said, pushing his way past the other agents. "Do you see wires running from the door?"

Elle looked. She spotted five wires running from the door to a box next to the sofa. "Yeah, five of them. They're running to a black box under the window," she yelled.

"What colors are they?"

There was a pause as Elle looked again. "Red, yellow, black, blue, and green."

Reid backed away from the door. Gideon, Hotch, and Morgan waited for his answer. Reid stared straight ahead as he thought.

"Well?" Morgan asked impatiently. "What is it?"

Reid didn't answer right away.

"Reid," Gideon said. "We don't have time."

Reid took a deep breath. "It's the black one," he said.

Hotch and Morgan looked at each other. "Are you sure?" Hotch asked.

Reid looked him in the eye. "Positive," he said.

"Elle," Hotch yelled through the door, "it's the black one."

Elle took a deep breath and reached for the black wire. Outside, the four agents held their breaths, waiting for the sure explosion. Elle yanked the wire out of the box. "Okay!" she yelled.

Gideon reached toward the doorknob. "Elle," he yelled. "I'm coming in!"

He grasped the doorknob, holding his breath. Slowly he opened it, and Elle fell into his arms. Gideon held her tight. "It's okay," he said soothingly.

Elle looked up at him, tears streaming down her face. "Gideon, there are others!"

Gideon looked confused.

"He told me that I would have to die like all the others." Reid and Morgan looked at each other. "There are more women down there!"


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

Morgan slid past the coroner's assistants carrying Robert Eisler's dead body. He watched as Elle shuddered as the corpse passed. It made him bristle inside, seeing the normally cool Elle so distraught.

Hotch and Gideon searched the house frantically, looking for the girls that Elle said were there.

Gideon stumbled down the basement stairs, flipping on the light. "Hotch!" he yelled up the stairs.

Hotch quickly followed him down the rickety stairs. He spotted the newspaper clippings on the wall and turned away quickly. It nearly killed him to think of what his friend had been through.

"Look at this," Gideon said, walking over to a large padlocked freezer in the corner.

"Elle didn't mention anything about this," Hotch said.

"Yeah, well, she was in the dark for the whole time. I doubt she was able to see much of anything," Gideon replied. He yanked on the padlock. "Locked tight."

Hotch looked around and spotted a crowbar. "Here," he said, handing Gideon the tool.

Gideon and Hotch pushed down on the bar, and the padlock popped off. They dropped the crowbar and lifted the lid.

The smell nearly knocked them off their feet. They stared in horror at the ice-crusted, naked bodies. Dried blood coated the bottom of the unit and some of the bodies. Each girl had her throat slit nearly to the spine or deeper.

Hotch reached for his radio. "We need the coroner down here in the basement," he said hoarsely.

Gideon couldn't tear his eyes away. To think, if they had been a little later, this would have happened to Elle. It was a thought that he just couldn't handle. He finally turned away and grabbed Hotch's shoulder. "Let's go," he whispered.

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Elle sat in a waiting ambulance. The paramedics had said that she had a few bruises, but other than that she was fine. At least physically. She watched as the coroner's van carried away the man that had held her hostage for the past twenty-four hours. She couldn't help but feel sorry for him. She shivered as the coroner carried six more bodies from the house, knowing that that could have been her.

Reid appeared beside her, a cup of coffee in his hand. He smiled as he handed it to her. "Thought you might want this."

Elle smiled at him gratefully and sipped it. "Mmmm, just the way I like it."

Reid sat next to her. After a few minutes of awkward silence, he said, "You scared me to death, Elle."

Elle looked at him, surprised.

"Really, you did," he said as he caught her eyes. "I don't know what I would have done if…"

Elle silenced him. "Thanks, Spence," she said, smiling at him. She glanced at her coffee, then back at him. "So, uh, how did you know that it was the black wire?"

Reid suddenly looked nervous. "Um…. I didn't."

Elle put her hand to her mouth. "You didn't?"

Reid shook his head and grinned at her. "Nope. I guessed."

Elle shook her head and laughed for the first time in twenty-four hours. "Nice guess," she said, putting her arm around his thin shoulders. He leaned into her embrace and grinned.

Hotch and Morgan approached them, a concerned look on their faces. "How are you?" Hotch asked, obviously concerned.

Elle thought for a minute, and the corner of her lips turned up into a smile. "I'm fine," she said.

Hotch sat on the other side of her and put his arm around her, while Morgan stood in front of them

"You know, he was on the verge of a nervous breakdown while you were missing," Morgan said, laughter in his eyes. Reid snickered.

Hotch turned red as Elle laughed. "Really?"

Hotch glared at Morgan. "They don't call them nervous breakdowns anymore," he said.

The three agents laughed again, and Elle hugged Hotch. "It's nice to know I'm cared about."

"You really are, Elle," he replied in all seriousness. "You really are." Morgan nodded emphatically, and Elle gave him a hug. He held her tightly, the friend that he had almost lost.

Gideon approached the threesome. "They want to take you to the hospital, just to check you out."

Elle groaned. "I just want to go home to bed."

Gideon shook his head. "You know procedure."

Elle finished her coffee and stood with the help of Morgan. "All right, let's get this over with."

Gideon helped her into the ambulance, and she sat on the gurney inside. "Oh, and Elle?"

Elle looked at him questioningly.

"Next time lock your door when you get home." With that, Gideon shut the doors.

_"**Appetitus Rationi Pareat (Let your desires be ruled by reason)"- Cicero**_

**Pretty much wrapping everything up in this chapter! I know it's probably not as exciting as the others, but I hope you liked it! Please review, and constructive criticism is always welcome!**


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